Method of manufacturing a transducer suspension system

ABSTRACT

A method for making a suspension system comprising a multiple layer flexure, a load beam and an arm. The load beam extends from the tip of the suspension all the way back to the rear of the arm. Datum holes are located in the load beam such that during assembly all reference points are made from the single load beam piece.

This applications is a division of application Ser. No. 09/087,019,filed on May 29, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,052,258 issued Apr. 18, 2000entitled “Transducer Suspension System”, in the name of David W.Albrecht, Thomas R. Albrecht, Satya Prakash Arya, Tzong-Shii Pan, SuryaPattanaik and Victor Wing Chun Shum.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to transducer suspension systems andmore particularly to a transducer suspension system comprised of stackedmaterial layers.

2. Description of Prior Art

Direct access storage devices (DASD), or disk drives, store informationon concentric tracks of a rotatable magnetic recording disk. A magnetichead or transducer element is moved from track to track to record andread the desired information. Typically, the magnetic head is positionedon an air bearing slider which flies above the surface of the disk asthe disk rotates. In some recently proposed disk drives, the slider (orcarrier) rides on a liquid film or bearing on the disk. A suspensionassembly connects the slider to a rotary or linear actuator. Thesuspension provides support for the slider.

As disk drives become smaller in size, the recorded track density hasincreased dramatically. This has necessitated the use of smaller andsmaller heads and suspensions. However, the smaller geometries of thesuspension and head make it more difficult to manufacture the diskdrive. In particular it has become extremely difficult to manufacturethese heads and suspension components and their related electrical leadlines with the required accuracy and small tolerances.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a suspension systemcomprises a multiple layer flexure, a load beam, and an arm. The loadbeam extends from a tip of the suspension back to the rear of the armmember. The arm member is shaped to correspond to the shape of the rearportion of the load beam. The arm member is welded underneath the loadbeam. The load beam has a plurality of datum holes. By extending theload beam back and over the arm, all datum holes may be located in theload beam layer. These datum holes can be used not only for assemblingall pieces of the suspension and attaching the slider, but also forsubsequent actuator or head stack assembly. If only one piece has all ofthe datum points, then greater accuracy in the total manufacturingprocess is possible. All datum features may be located in the load beamwith a size precision and precision to each other that is better than±0.010 mm. Both the arm and flexure have larger holes than thecorresponding holes on the load beam. Any alignment tooling pins, oractuator assembly parts which are inserted into the datum holes willcontact the smaller holes of the load beam. Additional features of thepresent invention include merge tabs, electrostatic discharge grounding,and recessed portions for shearing parts from a frame.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and advantages of the presentinvention, reference should be made to the following detaileddescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a data storage system of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a detailed top view of a suspension system of FIG. 1 for an upfacing head gimbal assembly;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a flexure member;

FIG. 5 is a top view of a conducting layer of the flexure member;

FIG. 6 is a top view of an insulating layer of the flexure member;

FIG. 7 is a top view of a support layer of the flexure member;

FIG. 8 is a top view of a load beam;

FIG. 9 is a top view of an arm member;

FIG. 10 is a top view of a suspension frame;

FIG. 11 is a top detailed view of a portion of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a top detailed view of an alternative embodiment of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is an exploded view of a head stack assembly;

FIG. 14 is a side view of a pair of suspensions and a head separatortool;

FIG. 15 is a top view of the head separator tool;

FIG. 16 is a side view of the head separator tool;

FIG. 17 is a side sectional view of the grounding node;

FIG. 18 is a top view of an alternative embodiment of the groundingnode;

FIG. 19 is a side view of the grounding node of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is a top view of another embodiment of the grounding node;

FIG. 21 is a side sectional view of the grounding node of FIG. 20;

FIG. 22 is a side sectional view of another embodiment of the groundingnode.

FIG. 23 is a side sectional view of another embodiment of the groundingnode.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 and 2 show schematic diagrams of the data storage system of thepresent invention which is designated by the general reference number10. System 10 comprises a plurality of magnetic recording disks 12. Eachdisk has a plurality of concentric data tracks. Disks 12 are mounted ona spindle motor shaft 14, which is connected to a spindle motor 16.Motor 16 is mounted to a chassis 18. The disks 12, spindle 14, and motor16 comprise a disk stack assembly 20.

A plurality of read/write heads 30 are positioned over the disks 12 suchthat each surface of the disks 12 have a corresponding head 30. Eachhead 30 is attached to one of a plurality of suspensions 32 with it eachsuspension 32 has a corresponding actuator arm 34. Suspensions 32 areconnected to a rotary actuator 36. Actuator 36 moves the heads in aradial direction across disks 12. Actuator 36 typically comprises arotating member 38 mounted to a rotating bearing 40, a motor winding 42and motor magnets 44. Actuator 36 is also mounted to chassis 18. Theheads 30, suspension 32 and actuator 36 comprise an actuator assembly46. The disk stack assembly 20 and the actuator assembly 46 are sealedin an enclosure 48 (shown by a dashed line) which provides protectionfrom particulate contamination.

A controller unit 50 provides overall control to system 10. Controllerunit 50 typically contains a central processing unit (CPU), memory unitand other digital circuitry. Controller 50 is connected to an actuatorcontrol/drive unit 56 which in turn is connected to actuator 36. Thisallows controller 50 to control the movement of heads 30 over disks 12.The controller 50 is connected to a read/write channel 58 which in turnis connected to the heads 30. This allows controller 50 to send andreceive data from the disks 12. Controller 50 is connected to a spindlecontrol/drive unit 60 which in turn is connected to spindle motor 16.This allows controller 50 to control the rotation of disks 12. A hostsystem 70, which is typically a computer system, is connected to thecontroller unit 50. System 70 may send digital data to controller 50 tobe stored on disks 12, or may request the digital data be read fromdisks 12 and sent to the system 70. The basic operation of DASD units iswell known in the art and is described in more detail in “MagneticRecording Handbook”, C. Dennis Mee and Eric D. Daniel, McGraw Hill BookCompany, 1990.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of a head 30 attached to a suspension 32. Thiscombination is referred to as a suspension assembly or head gimbalassembly (HGA) 80. In this case, the HGA is facing upward. Suspension 32has a longitudinal axis 100, a lateral axis 102 and a vertical axis 104.Suspension 32 is comprised of a load beam 110, laminated flexure member112, and an arm 34. Arm 34 is located underneath the rear portion ofload beam 110. Laminated flexure member 112 is formed from a three-layerlaminated material comprised of a steel support layer, electricallyinsulating layer, and electrically conductive layer. The various layersof the laminated member 112 are etched away in a photolithographicprocess to form the desired shapes.

The suspension 32 is extremely small. The distance from the rear of arm34 to the end of the suspension is typically about 22 mm. The head 30typically measures 1.25 mm×1.00 mm×0.30 mm. These dimensions varyaccording the particular disk drive system. In the future, thesedimensions will probably be even smaller.

The electrically conducting layer and electrically insulating layer areetched to form electrical lines (or leads) 120 which run from the reartermination pad area 122 to the head 30. Head 30 is comprised of aslider and a magnetic read/write transducer element. The electricallines 120 terminate and are electrically attached to the head at thehead termination pads 131. The electrical lines 120 are bent verticallyupward at the head termination pads 131.

Flexure member 112 provides a gimbal mount for attachment of the head30. The gimbal mount allows the head 30 to pitch in order to adjust itsorientation (static attitude) to achieve the proper air bearing betweenthe head 30 and disks 12 while the disks 12 is rotating. The flyingheight of the head 30 varies from near contact to 100 nm depending uponthe design, but typically during operation is 15 nm or less height abovethe disk. Proper alignment of the head 30 on the gimbal mount iscritical.

The electrical lines 120 are designed to run along the same surfacecontaining the head 30 and to run within the outer edges of the loadbeam 110, and close to the gimbal area around the head 30. In thisconfiguration, the electrical lines 120 will be protected againstinadvertent damage during handling. FIG. 4 shows a top view of theflexure member 112.

FIGS. 5-7 show top views of the various overlying element layers offlexure 112. FIGS. 5-7 show respectively, the electrically conductinglayer 150, the electrically insulating layer 152, and the support layer154 of the laminated member 112. Initially, the layers 150, 152, 154 arelayers in a single laminated sheet of material. The member 112 is thenformed from the sheet by using photolithographic etch processes as areknown in the art. Layer 150 is made of a conducting material such ascopper. In a preferred embodiment, the material is a high strengthcopper alloy and has a thickness of between 2 microns and 25 microns andpreferably 18 microns. Layer 152 is made of an electrically insulatingmaterial and in a preferred embodiment is made of polyimide or Teflonand has a thickness of between 5 and 25 microns and preferably 18microns. Layer 154 is made of a thin stiff material which is able tobend slightly, and in a preferred embodiment is made of stainless steeland has a thickness of between 12 and 30 microns and preferably 20microns.

Referring now to FIG. 5. The electrical lines 120 comprise five separatelines. In a preferred embodiment, two of the lines run to the inductiveelement in the head 30 which is used to write data and two of the lines120 run to the magneto-resistive element in the head 30 which is used toread data. The fifth line is used to provide an electrical connectionpath (typically of ground reference potential) to the support layer 154of the flexure 112 and the load beam 110. Each of the lines has a thinrectangular cross section having a relatively large surface area on thetop and bottom surfaces and relatively small surface area on the sidesurfaces. Lines 120 start from the termination pads 135 at area 122. Thedistal end of termination pads 135 provide connection to the read/writechannel 58 through a flex cable. Solder bumps are produced on optimizedpads 135 with enough volume to terminate to the flex cable pad. Thiseliminates the need and cost of positioning solder bumps on the flexcable pads. The distal ends 135 provide connection to the read/writechannel 58. The lines 120 run from the side of the arm 34 towards thecenter longitudinal access 100 of the suspension 32. The lines 120 thenrun in a generally longitudinal direction toward the head 30. Line 170terminates at the grounding node 172. The lines 120 may be plated withgold in order to protect against environmental corrosion of the copperconductors.

At the distal end of suspension 32, the four head lines 120 separate andrun along either side of head 30, then turn backward toward the head 30to terminate at the front face of head 30 at the head termination pads131. This is necessary because the magnetic read/write transducerelement is located on the front face of the slider. The lines 120 arebent 90° vertically in order to interface with pads 131.

FIG. 6 shows a top view of the electrically insulating layer 152. Layer152 lies between layers 150 and 154. Layer 152 is shaped to provideelectrical insulation protection to the lines 120 in layer 150 whichdirectly overlay the layer 152. Layer 152 forms an insulating strip 210directly beneath the lines 120. At the head area, layer 152 is shapedinto a series of pads 212 which underlie lines 120. This is done toallow the lines 120 to be more flexible at the head area such that lines120 do not interfere with movement of the head 30. Layer 152 also has aplurality of bumper pads 214 which are used to prevent metal contactwith the disk during assembly and to prevent shock during operation.

FIG. 7 shows a top view of the support layer 154. Layer 154 has a rearportion 220 and a front portion 222. The front portion 222 has a distalend 226 having a front platform 228 which provides support for lines120. Behind platform 228 is a flexure aperture 230. A tongue section 232provides support and an attachment point for head 30. Between tonguesection 232 and platform 228 are a pair of rectangular apertures 234.Apertures 234 allowed the lines 120 to bend as they approach thetermination pads 131. A pair of tabs 236 extend from tongue section 232and function as motion limiters when they are bent back under load beam110.

FIG. 8 shows a top view of load beam 110. Load beam 110 is generallyflat and rigid and made of a stainless steel or other rigid material. Inthe preferred embodiment, the load beam 110 is stainless steel of about0.025 to 0.075 mm thick and preferably 0.038 mm. It is desired tomaintain the weight and inertia of the load beam as small as possiblewithout compromising its structural rigidity.

Load beam 110 has a distal end with a tab 254 which is used for loadingand unloading of the slider during operation of the disk drive. Anaperture 256 is located behind tab 254. A tongue section 258 extendsinto aperture 256. A stamped raised button or dimple 260 is located ontongue 258. Dimple 260 contacts tongue section 232 of flexure member 112and allows head 30 to gimbal (pitch and roll) slightly such that itallows the air bearing to follow the disk contour as it flies over thedisk. A pair of corners 262 of aperture 256 provide a contact point fortabs 236 of flexure 154 such that tabs 236 pass under load beam 110 andprovide a motion limiting function for the flexure member 154. Load beam110 is also formed by a photolithographic process and the raisedfeatures are stamped.

The suspension 32 has a plurality of precision located apertures 130,132, 134, and 136 in the load beam layer. As explained in more detailbelow, these apertures serve as datum features. Aperture 132 also servesto receive a shaft of the actuator 36. A plurality of suspensions 32 maybe stacked unto the actuator shaft. However, the embodiments of thissuspension are best realized in an actuator assembly of very small sizeand having just one pair of up and down facing suspensions.

Load beam 110 has an oval shaped aperture 280 located along thelongitudinal axis 100 which corresponds to aperture 130 of suspension32. Aperture 280 has two straight edges 281 located at its forward edge.Edges 281 are located 900 with respect to one another and aresymmetrical with respect to longitudinal axis 100. A circular aperture282 is located at the rear end of load beam 110 and is also locatedalong axis 100. Aperture 282 corresponds to aperture 132 of suspension32. Aperture 282 has two straight edges 284 located at its rear edge andfour recess areas 286 equally located around its circumference. Edges284 are located 90° with respect to one another and are symmetrical withrespect to axis 100.

Load beam 110 has a pair of apertures 290 and 292 located on either sideof aperture 282. Apertures 290 and 292 correspond to apertures 134 and136 of suspension 32. Apertures 290 and 292 are located along a line 294which passes thru aperture 282 and may or may not pass thru the centerpoint of aperture 282. Line 294 is offset at an angle 296 relative toaxis 100. Angle 296 is preferably in the range of +45° to −45° and isshown at about +30°. Aperture 290 can be circular but preferably it alsohas two straight edges 298 located at its forward edge. Edges 298 arelocated at 90° with respect to one another and are symmetrical withrespect to an axis that is parallel to axis 100.

In this new miniature suspension, all of the critical datum apertures280, 282, 290. 292 are concurrently formed in the single load beam layer110 by etching to a tolerance better than +/−10 microns. All higherlevel assembly alignments are to these features in the load beam;including slider attached, suspension alignment on the carriage, andpivot cartridge alignment to the carriage/suspension assembly (HSA). Inthe suspension, all of the holes in the arm 34 and flexure 112 whichcorrespond to apertures 280, 282, 290 and 292 are smaller or recess by asmall amount (approx. 50 microns) from the corresponding boundary edgesof the apertures in the load beam.

Aperture 282 which accepts a pivot carriage is not created as a totallyround hole marginally larger than the pivot carriage, but has the 90°v-shaped edges 284 which oppose the opposing v-shaped edges 281 inaperture 280. In attaching the head 30 to the suspension 32, a toolingpin in aperture 280 is biased against the slider facing straight edges281 by a movable tooling pin in aperture 282 that biases against theopposing straight edges 284. Thus, the accurate establishment andalignment of axis 100 of load beam 110 is firmly established by thecylindrical tooling pins resting against the edges 291 and 284.

Next consider the case of suspension alignment at the HSA level. Inaddition to the apertures 280 and 282, etched apertures 290 and 292 havebeen added. Apertures 290 and 292 are created with +/−10 micronstolerance accuracy. Apertures 290 and 292 both accept cylindricaltooling pins or cylindrical datum posts in the actuator carriage.Aperture 290 with its straight edges 298 is used to accurately locateload beam 110 in the plane comprised of axis 100 and 102. Aperture 292acts as the rotational reference for establishing the suspension centerline 100 with respect to the carriage coil and the appropriate carriagecrash stop datum surface. This separation distance between apertures 290and 292 may be relatively long because they are offset at angle 296 withrespect to axis 100. Due to the shortage of space in the smallsuspension, it was not possible to locate them along the axis 100 andconcurrently have them receive the corresponding datum features in theactuator carriage. These load beam features provide for self alignmentof the suspensions to the carriage without the need for any additionaldatum tools in the stacking operation for the HSA. The special shape ofaperture 282 in the load beam also provides a precise datum againstwhich to bias the pivot cartridge so that the center of pivot rotationis accurately established with respect to the mass and center of gravityof the HGA.

Load beam 110 has a side tab 300 which has a through hole 302. Thisfeature is used for merge and will be explained in more detail below.Load beam 110 has a side notch 310 located on the opposite side from tab300.

Load beam 110 has a second oval aperture 320 located along axis 100between aperture 280 and 282. Another circular aperture 322 is locatedat the rear near aperture 292 and provides access for a fastener to holdthe HGAs to the actuator carriage before the pivot cartridge isinstalled.

FIG. 9 shows a top view of arm 34. Arm 34 is typically made of stainlesssteel (preferably #305) material having a thickness of between 0.075 mmand 0.30 mm and preferably 0.15 mm. Arm 34 has apertures 350, 352 and354 which correspond to apertures 282, 290 and 292, respectively, ofload beam 110. Arm 34 also has apertures 360 and 362 which correspond toapertures 320 and 322 of load beam 110. Arm 34 also has a notch 370 inits side which corresponds to notch 310 of load beam 110.

The assembly process for the suspension 32 will now be explained.Initially, the flexure member 112 was fabricated from a thin layerlaminated sheet by photolithographic etching as explained above.Preferably, multiple members 112 are made at the same time from a singlesheet. The multiple members 112 are held to the frame (the remainingportion of the sheet) at four frame attached locations 400, 402, 404,406. See FIG. 4.

Load beam 112 and arm 34 are welded together. To hold the two piecestogether with proper alignment during welding, spring loaded toolingpins are placed through holes in the strip frame to which the load beampieces are attached and datum holes 320 and 282 of load beam 110 and arm34. All datum holes in load beam 110 are slightly smaller than thecorresponding holes in the other pieces arm 34 or flexure 112. Thisinsures that all datum points are measured from the load beam 110 duringmanufacture. This insures accuracy.

After beam 110 and arm 34 are welded together, they are placed underflexure 112. Spring loaded tooling pins are placed through apertures 130and 132 to precisely position the pieces. The pieces are then weldedtogether. In an alternative process, arm 34, load beam 110 and flexure112 may be concurrently aligned and welded.

Once all the pieces (load beam 110, flexure 112 and arm 34) are weldedtogether, they must be separated from the frame. As shown in FIG. 10,the suspension 32 is still held to a frame 450 by attachment points400-406 of the flexure member 112.

A shearing tool is used to separate the attachment points 400-406. It isundesirable for attachment point 402 to leave any tab which protrudesbeyond the side edge of suspension 32. This is because it may interferewith the outer perimeter of the disk stack during operation. Notches 310and 370 in load beam 110 and arm 34, respectively, are located belowattachment point 402 on flexure 112. These recesses 310 and 370 allowthe shearing tool to cut inside the outer edge of suspension 32 andinsure that no remaining portion of attachment point 402 extends beyondthe edge.

Another difficulty in shearing occurs at attachment point 400.Attachment point 400 contains the termination pad area 122 where theelectrical lines terminate. If the shear is not clean, the insulatinglayer 152 may tear, thereby allowing the conductor layer 150 to shortwith the support layer 154.

FIG. 11 shows a top detailed view of attachment point 400. In order toprevent the shorting problem, the layers 150, 152, and 154 are staggeredsuch that they do not overlie each other at the attachment point 400.The shearing tool cuts along a line 460 and independently cuts each tabof layers 150, 152, and 154. Since the layers 150, 152 and 154 do notoverlie each other along the cut line 460, the possibility ofinadvertent shorting is greatly reduced.

FIG. 12 shows an alternative embodiment of attachment 400. Here again,the layers 150, 152 and 154 had been staggered. Copper layer 150 fromeach of pads 135 runs between two strips of polyamide 152. Steel layer154 now extends via a pair of arms 470 to frame 450. The shearing toolagain cuts along line 460 and 461.

Once the suspension 32 has been removed from frame 450, it is ready forattachment of head 30. As explained above, the datum holes in load beam110 are used to precisely position suspension 32 with respect to head30. Head 30 is attached to tongue section 232 by adhesive. The fourelectrical head lines 120 are then ultrasonically bonded to head 30.

FIG. 13 shows an exploded view of a head stack assembly which isdesignated by the general reference number of 500. HSA 500 comprises asuspension 32, an opposite facing suspension 502, a carriage 504, acartridge bearing 506, a washer ring 508, a locking nut 510, and afastener 512. Suspension 502 is similar to suspension 32 describedabove, with the exception that suspension 502 is a mirror image ofsuspension 32. Suspension 502 has a head 30 not shown, which willcontact the top surface of a disk whereas suspension 32 has a head 30which will contact the bottom portion of a disk. Carriage 504 has datumapertures 520 and 522, and aperture 524 which correspond to apertures290, 292 and 322 of suspension 32. Carriage 504 also comprises anactuator coil 530 and a flex cable 532. Flex cable 532 has a pluralityof electrical termination pads 534 which correspond to the pads 135 onsuspensions 32 and 502.

During assembly, suspension 32, carriage 504, and suspension 502 arestacked together and a tooling pin is passed through hole 290 in thesuspensions and hole 520 in the carriage, and a second tooling pin ispassed through hole 292 in the suspension and hole 522 in the carriage.Alternatively, the apertures 520 and 522 in carriage 504 could be postsextending from the surface rather than apertures. These posts would thenbe inserted through apertures 290 and 292 of the load beams of thesuspensions. Once the suspension datum holes 290 and 292 receive andalign the carriage 504, a fastener shown as a pin 512 passes throughholes 322 of the suspensions and holds the suspension assembly togetherfor future processing. Alternatively, pin 512 may be omitted if thecartridge bearing 506, washer 508 and locking nut 510 have already beenattached.

The apertures 290 and 292 of load beam 110 are slightly smaller than thecorresponding apertures 352 and 354 of arm 34 and apparatus 520 and 522of carriage 504. This means that the load beam is always used as thereference for the datum points.

Next, the electrical connection is made between the flex cable 532 andthe suspensions 30 and 502. A solder reflow process is used toelectrically connect the pads 534 to the corresponding pads 135 of thesuspensions. Next, the carriage bearing 506 is inserted throughapertures 282 of the suspension and an aperture 540 of the carriage. Thespacer 508 and locking nut 510 are then attached to cartridge bearing506 and locked in place.

Before removal of the head stack assembly from its manufacuturingtooling and installation into the head disk assembly, it is necessary toinsure that the heads 30 of suspensions 32 and 502 would be kept in aspaced relationship to one another in order to prevent damage to thedelicate heads 30. A separation tool is used for such purpose. In thevery miniature size head stack asemblies of the present invention,separator tools cannot be received and retained by the head stackassembly. The load beam tabs 300 solve this problem.

FIG. 14 shows a side view of a pair of suspension 32 and a separatortool 600.

FIGS. 15 and 16 show top and side views, respectively, of separator tool600. Separator tool 600 is made of a non conductive polymer material.Separator tool 600 has a pair of dimples 602 located on opposite sidesof the separator tool 600. The dimples 602 are each located within ahorseshoe shaped wall 604. In operation, tool 600 is placed such thatdimples 602 engage hole 302 in tab 300 of the two suspensions 32 and502. The wall 604 is shaped to receive tabs 302. As shown in FIG. 12,the tool 600 pushes tab 300 apart and is aligned and retained by tab 300and hole 302, and a distal end 610 of the separator tool 600 pushesagainst the pair of load beams and hence heads 30, not shown, are spacedapart. This protects the heads 30 until they are ready to be insertedbetween the disks.

FIG. 17 shows a cross sectional view of a grounding node 172. Groundingline 170 is needed to electrically ground the support layer 154 ofsuspension 32. This is necessary to prevent buildup of electrical chargewhich may damage the delicate electronic components of head 30, or toground reference the support layer under the conductors. In FIG. 17,line 170 is located over hole 360 of arm 34 and hole 320 of load beam110. Support layer 154 and insulating layer 152 are etched away forminga hole beneath line 170. A drop of electrically conductive epoxy 550,such as Hysol Koizo is placed within the hole, thereby providing anelectrical connection between the support layer 154 and the electricalline 170.

FIGS. 18 and 19 show top and side views of an alternative embodiment ofthe grounding node 172. The only difference is that the load beam 110and flexure 112 have been bent into the hole 320.

FIGS. 20 and 21 show top and side views, respectively, of anotherembodiment of the grounding node 172. Instead of epoxy, line 170 is bentthrough hole 360 to contact support layer 154.

FIG. 22 shows a side view of another embodiment of the grounding node172. Here the line 170 is bent through hole 320 and bent up against theother side of the hole to contact support layer 154.

FIG. 23 shows a side view of another embodiment of the grounding node172 that is similar to that shown in FIG. 17. The difference is that theload beam 120 has a slight bend with contacts grounding line 170 and theelectrical connection is made by welding.

While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have beenillustrated in detail, it should be apparent that modifications andadaptations to those embodiments may occur to one skilled in. the artwithout departing from the scope of the present invention as set forthin the following claims.

We claim:
 1. A method of manufacturing a transducer suspension systemcomprising the steps of: providing a load beam having a longitudinalaxis, a lateral axis, and a perpendicular axis, the load beam having afirst and second ends, the load beam having a first and second pluralityof load beam datum apertures; aligning a flexure member over the loadbeam, the flexure member comprised of an electrically conducting layer,an electrically insulating layer, and a support layer, the flexuremember having a plurality of flexure datum apertures which correspond tothe first plurality of load beam datum apertures, inserting of toolingmembers through the first plurality of load beam datum apertures and theflexure datum apertures; attaching the flexure member to the load beam;aligning an arm member underneath the load beam at the first end of theload beam, the arm member having a plurality of arm datum apertureswhich correspond to the second plurality of load beam datum apertures;inserting of tooling members through the arm member datum apertures andthe second plurality of load beam datum apertures; attaching the armmember to the load beam.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the flexuremember is mounted to a frame at a plurality of attachment points and theframe is cut at the attachment points.
 3. The method of claim 2, whereinat least one of the attachment points has a notch section in the loadbeam and the arm at said one of the attachment points.
 4. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the frame has as electrically conduction layer, andelectrically insulating layer, and a support layer, and wherein at leastone of the attachment points is an electrical termination pad and thetermination pad is attached to the frame with the electricallyconducting layer, electrically insulating layer, and support layer in astaggered non-overlying relationship at the attachment point.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first plurality of load beam datumapertures are smaller than the corresponding flexure datum apertures andthe second plurality of load beam datum apertures are smaller than thecorresponding arm datum apertures.